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Utility, sanitation crews included in Move Over Act

Utility and sanitation crews are now offered the same roadside protections from speeding motorists as law enforcement and other emergency vehicles as part of sweeping transportation laws passed this spring by the Florida Legislature.

Utility and sanitation crews are now offered the same roadside protections from speeding motorists as law enforcement and other emergency vehicles as part of sweeping transportation laws passed this spring by the Florida Legislature.

Under an amendment to the 2002 Move Over Act, motorists now have to slow down or move over for utility crews and sanitation vehicles in an effort to reduce wrecks and deaths of people serving their communities.

The amendment went into effect July 1.

The law requires motorists to change lanes on a multi-lane road or slow down to 20 mph less than the posted speed limit; in areas with a speed limit less than 25 mph, motorist must pass at 5 mph.

A June legislative analysis with input from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles showed that including utility and sanitation vehicles under the law would increase citations and fines, but the fiscal impact is undetermined because the number of possible citations cannot be predicted.

In 2013, there were 17,118 citations written statewide for Move Over Act violations with total fines amounting to $513,540 and up to $2.12 million in court costs.

The penalty for not yielding to emergency vehicles is a $30 fine and up to $124 in court costs, depending on jurisdiction, plus a three-point assessment against a motorist's driver license.